Rutgers Head Coach Greg Schiano talks latest in Spring Practice: Press Conference

Rutgers Football spring ball is fully underway, and the Scarlet Knights completed their 11th practice of the session. Shortly after, head coach Greg Schiano spoke to the media for his spring football press conference.

Hear Schiano’s complete comments to the media embedded in this article, or on live replay on the The Knight Report YouTube Channel. Schiano spoke for roughly 8 minutes and addressed a range of questions, including how the program has responded to the new coaches, quarterback battle thoughts, other positional battles, and much more.

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Full Greg Schiano Presser Transcript

GS: Guys, thanks again. It feels like yesterday that we were in here, and a week went by that fast. Guys are really working hard, they’re doing a good job.I’m excited about this group, the way they’re coming together. It’s always interesting as a head coach to see how your team begins to mold together. Especially in this day and age with so many new additions.But I do, I like it, I like the way the staff’s coming together. We just need to keep pressing it. We’ve got one more week left.We’ll go Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and then we’ll call it a wrap. So far, very pleased, and we just need to keep getting better.

Last week of spring, do you have a sense of whether the quarterback battle could be close to the end? Or are we going to look at something that’s going towards training? 

GS: Yeah, they’re making it hard on us. Yeah, they really are, which is exactly what you want as a coach. I’m anxious to sit down. We have a lot of recruits here today, so that’ll be well into the evening. But tomorrow morning, get up early and get started on this tape. I’m anxious to watch some of that. It’s hard on the field to always see what’s going on, so I’m anxious to watch it too.

What are your thoughts on what you’ve seen from the O-line? 

GS: Yeah, I think we’ve done a little mixing and matching and moving some guys around just to know what people are capable of doing. Then I think we’ll kind of set it how we want it to work in training camp. Then you’ve got to get a little lucky and stay healthy, and then you can keep progressing that way. But yeah, I think they’re gelling. Not everybody’s at 100%, so some of those probably won’t get a realistic view until training camp. But I think they’re making progress for sure.

How have you seen some of the young receivers like [Elias] Coke and [Dyzier] Carter develop during the spring? 

Yeah, they’re really, really—both of those guys are really good football players and great additions to our football team. They fit in really well. They love football.It’s always a big thing with us, right? If you love football, this is a great place. If you like it, it might not be the right place for you. So they really love it, and they’re just making progress, leaps and bounds. Coach Brock does a great job with teaching those guys and bringing them along just at the right tempo. But I think both of those guys will help us. 

The safety room has a new position coach, a couple of guys returning also from injury. How does that room continue to develop under the new coaching? 

GS: Yeah, I think Coach Cox is doing a tremendous job. He’s a really good football coach. I did not know him. This is someone that Travis knew well, and man alive. I enjoy coaching with him. Really bright guy. Really good football coach. He’s doing a really good job. The safety play has really improved.

With so many new faces on defense, both on the field, but also the staff, how has that been going so far with the communication and where’s this defense and kind of understanding Coach Johansen? 

GS: I think it’s going well. I think there’s a chemistry that’s forming. It doesn’t happen overnight.I always say to the staff, over a long period of time, it happens all of a sudden. People think, oh, it didn’t just happen. It happened every single day that you worked at it, that you planted the seeds, and then all of a sudden, poof, the lawn pops. So that’s where we’re headed, and I like where we’re headed. We just have to keep getting better. 

Now a few weeks in, has there been anything, whether it’s a position group or team-wide, that’s kind of surprised you, whether they’re ahead or even behind schedule so far? 

GS: Surprised me? I like the way their young running backs are running. That doesn’t surprise me, but I like the way they’re learning, and Coach Shaw does a great job with those guys. He has a system. I think the whole thing starts with Coach Ciarrocca. He has a system, and our assistant coaches learn it, and then they become masters of it, experts at it. And I think Coach Shaw is getting to that level now where he really understands the runs and how they operate, and I think those young backs are learning very quickly how to do that, which is a good thing, right? The more backs you have, it’s always a better place to be. 

In the portal, Coach, you brought in some experienced guys off the edge, but you’ve also got a couple of young players. What have you seen from that group in being able to consistently generate and come off there? 

GS: Yeah, I think we have a really good mix of experienced players, as you said, and then some young guys that are going to be, I think, could be all-star players, really good players. Now, they have to get a little bigger, yes. They have to get stronger, yes.But they have some unique abilities, which we work so hard to try to find that, right? And we’ve talked about some of them, and I’m looking forward to them continuing to develop because they have talent. 

Obviously, you’ve got a guy like AJ who’s been here for a couple years now. How have you seen him develop from day one to today? 

GS: Yeah, I think he’s much more comfortable, like any of us would be, right, if he’d done something for two cycles. He’s very comfortable in his own skin, who he is. He plays the game with confidence. That’s why I say those two guys are making it hard on us.

Just after the year that he had, have you seen anything different in Antwan Raymond, the kind of way he’s approaching this offseason, the spring, anything different? 

GS: Yeah, Antwan’s done a good job. I think the things he’s able to do right now, he’s doing a great job with them. He’s really set high expectations for himself, and I love that, but we’ve got to help him get there. And I think he’s capable of getting there, but we’ve all got to work together to get there. But I love that. I love when players want to go to there.

Can you just give us an idea of the STUDs position, like what players you’re looking to play there, or if it’s on the defense? I’ve never heard of the stud position before. 

GS: Yeah, the stud’s not a lot different than what the STAR was, or the nickel was. That’s all. It’s just a different game. But, yeah, we have some safety-type bodies that play there, some corner-type bodies that play there. It’s a good mix. I think when you look at the guys that are playing the position, you know, Jesse [Ofurie]‘s playing the position, and DK Gilley‘s playing the position. There’s some athletic guys that are lining up there and doing a good job. Davoun Fuse is playing. Those are really good athletes, and we’ll find ways. We are going to find roles for every player that can help us win, and whether that’s different packages, whether that’s third down, whether that’s early downs, that’s our job, right? If you have a good player, you never want to have a good player, a guy who can be productive standing next to you. So you’ve got to find a way to use him, and that’s really our goal, especially with a new defensive staff. I want them to see their talents and really come to me with, I think this is what we should do. I know them better than they do, so I want them to get to know them. And I could tell them, but that’s not the best way to do it. You give hints, but you want them to see it themselves. And sometimes beauty’s in the eye of the beholder too. It’s been a good exercise, and I think what we’re going to have is we’re going to have a lot of guys that can play on defense, which I love. You guys know that. I think you have fresh guys out there that are starving, and then it just helps everything. It helps your practices be better. When a guy knows he’s getting in that game, he doesn’t think he’s getting in. He knows he’s getting in that game. You’re going to practice just a little harder during the week, and you guys know how I feel about practice.

Look, again, appreciate you covering the team as always, guys. It means a ton, and we’re getting better, so we’ve got to keep doing it. Thanks.